With almost perfect timing, when the media is awash with stories about horsemeat being where it shouldn’t be, MSCI ESG Research and the Business Benchmark on Farm Animal Welfare have teamed up to launch a benchmark focused on animal welfare.

According to the press release: “Regulation (in particular within the European Union), consumer concern, pressure from animal welfare NGOs, and media concerns about poor corporate practices have seen investors start to pay much greater attention to the issue of farm animal welfare, both as a business risk and/or opportunity, and as a measure of companies' quality of management of environmental and social issues more generally.”

The new benchmark aims to measure how global food companies are “responding to the risks and opportunities presented by farm animal welfare”.

Speaking to Financial News, Nicky Amos, programme director at the BBFAW, said: “The benchmark will very much focus on welfare of food companies, but I think, given all the activity we are hearing, it illustrates the complexity of supply chains. Our benchmark is looking to asses companies on the clarity of their position, with respect to a whole range of welfare issues, but we also looking at their management approach and evidence of governance."

So presumably getting the right type of meat in the right product is probably a good start for a high score?

Amos said: “There are some parallels but we have to distinguish between the two issues. One is very much about quality, and one is more welfare linked. Obviously the implications across both is the effectiveness of how companies are implementing and managing their policies in the supply chain.”